Water for Food and Rural Development

The concept of integrated water resources management has rapidly gained widespread currency. As attempts to formulate a global vision or water are on the increase, it is important to clarity this concept so that it does not degenerate into an empty slogan. This important volume establishes the crucial relationship between the multiple uses of water resources on the one hand and food security and rural development on the other, and suggests innovative approaches and methodologies that can help resolve the deadlock in water resources development and management. Bringing together a whole spectrum of views and approaches on new water futures, this volume of 17 original essays presents experiences from across the South Asian region. The book is divided into three parts. The first part introduces the reader to existing efforts to develop water resources. The essays in the second part establish the relationship between water, food security and rural development, while the concluding part of the book describes various innovative approaches which have been applied in different parts of South Asia to initiate the transformative process. The contributors argue strongly for an integrated approach to water resources management that would make it part of the broader agenda of development and rural transformation. They cite concrete examples to show that a shift way from an exclusive focus on infrastructure development and increased production is possible in practice, and is not just a utopian ideal. All water-related interventions, they maintain, should include strategies for sustainable biomass production; resource-rights and asset creation through generating employment; equity in access to and distribution of resources, and democratic planning and management. This timely and accessible volume is an important contribution to international, regional and national debates on managing water resources and on enhancing activism to make integrated water management a possibility. It will be of interest to professionals in the fields of resource management, rural development, environmental studies, engineering and participatory management, as also to aid development agencies and NGOs involved in the fields of water use and management, sustainable development and food security. It will also be of use to students of development studies and sociology.